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Grace was determined to walk down the aisle to marry Nick (Picture: BNPS.co.uk)

When Grace McGowan, 27, got engaged to her partner, Nick Capaldi, she was determined to walk down the aisle.

She knew that would be a challenge. Five years before she had been left paralysed by a horrific car crash, which gave her a severe spinal injury.

Despite using a wheelchair to get around, Grace was determined to walk down the aisle on her feet.

After months of hard work Grace was able to make her dream a reality, with the help of a special robotic exoskeleton that allowed her to stand upright and walk.

The robotic system, called ReWalk, works by detecting and enhancing movement, allowing those with disabilities to walk.

Grace was paralysed in a car crash five years ago (Picture: BNPS.co.uk)

Guests at the wedding, in Sherborne, Dorset, weren’t told of Grace’s plans, so her journey down the aisle was a wonderful surprise.

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Grace said: ‘Walking down the aisle was something I thought was lost to me when I had the car accident but in 2015, I was extremely lucky to be given the opportunity to try an exoskeleton and I found the one that worked for me, the ReWalk.

‘Everyone has different priorities and I’m not ashamed of my disability but walking down the aisle was just something I personally wanted to do.

‘We rented the machine at home for four months beforehand and Nick learnt how to walk me.

She was able to walk on her wedding day with the use of a robotic exoskeleton (Picture: BNPS.co.uk)

‘He then had to train my brother Alex up to walk me as he was taking me down the aisle.

‘Alex learned how to do it in literally two hours, that’s all the time we had.

‘A lot of people put a lot of effort into making me walking a reality and I’d love the effect of this to be that exoskeletons are more widely available to anyone who wants to use one.’

Grace’s mum, Helen, was touched to see her daughter making her way down the aisle as she’d always dreamed.